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Drafted — not technically validated
Record revision 1 · The 30 mm revolver cannon of every British gun-armed jet from the Hunter in 1954 to the Tornado.
Real-world weapon as described in public sources. Weights and dimensions change with the fins, fuzes and variant fitted; the data plate names the variants its figures describe, and differences are noted beside the number they affect. The record describes the weapon; it is not a guide to employing it.
ADEN 30 mm revolver cannon · ADEN 30 mm
- Type
- 30 mm revolver cannon [1]
- Origin
- United Kingdom; Armament Development Establishment and Royal Small Arms Factory, Enfield [1]
- In service
- Since 1954, when it entered service on the Hawker Hunter [1]
- Weight
- 196 kg (432 lb) with 200 rounds, according to Wikipedia [1]
- Dimensions
- Length 1.59 to 1.64 m; barrel 1.08 m [1]
- Calibre
- 30 mm, firing the 30 × 113 mm belted round [1]
- Action
- Gas-operated revolver, fired electrically and fully automatic once loaded [1]
- Rate of fire
- 1,200 to 1,700 rounds per minute [1]
- Muzzle velocity
- 795 m/s [1]
- Ammunition
- 30 × 113 mm belted [1]
- Carried by
From Mauser to Enfield
During the Second World War Mauser developed a revolver cannon with a motorised firing mechanism, in 20 mm as the MG 213 and in 30 mm as the MK 213. Only five prototypes were finished by the end of the war. [1] British engineers at the Armament Development Establishment, Enfield, took the idea forward to meet an Air Ministry demand for more lethal aircraft guns; the name ADEN stands for Armament Development, Enfield. [1] The French DEFADEFA 550 series OrdnanceFrance's 30 mm revolver cannon, the standard gun of every French gun-armed fighter from 1954 until the Rafale. and the American M39M39 cannon OrdnanceThe US Air Force's 20 mm revolver cannon of the 1950s, proven in Korea and still in the F-5's nose. come from the same German design.
On every British jet
The ADEN entered service on the Hawker Hunter in 1954 and was used on every British gun-armed aircraft until the Tornado in the 1980s. [1] The Hunter carried four in a removable pack. [1] A 25 mm version, the ADEN 25, was chosen for the Harrier GR.5, but problems with weight and with integrating the gun pod led to its cancellation in 1999; Fleet Air Arm Sea Harriers kept the 30 mm gun. [1]
Sources
- ADEN cannon. Wikipedia (secondary source). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ADEN_cannon (accessed 2026-10-27).
Wikipedia articles are secondary sources and can change; they are cited with the date they were read. NAVEDTRA training manuals and budget justification exhibits are official US publications, but each describes the weapons in service when it was written.